It’s totally unexpected. Alberta’s struggling economy is about to be lifted up by marijuana. For years, medical marijuana in Canada has been a dicey issue, with recreational use outlawed and medical use closely monitored. But, Alberta’s only industrial-scale grower of medical marijuana, Aurora Cannabis, has just gotten the green light. And, it’s noticed business is booming. The company has over 2,000 customers.  

Before that, Aurora waited for the issuance of a sales license from Health Canada. It wasn’t forthcoming until its crops had undergone extensive lab testing for quality control. It had to be done by independent, licensed, third parties. 

Booming Alberta company supplies nearly 4,000 customers, and demand is climbing.

Tucked into the rolling hills of Alberta's ranch country, just down the road from the small town of Cremona, lies one of Canada's biggest medical marijuana operations.  

Just over an hour from Calgary, the Aurora Cannabis production facility is set back from the road, and ringed by barbed wire. 

Security is tight, inside and out.

​Inside the sprawling 55,000-square-foot facility, key cards are needed to enter and exit each room, and security cameras perched above doors monitor everything that goes on.

There are no pharmacies in Alberta licensed to sell medical cannabis but there is at least one pharmacist locally that would like to see that changed.

“Pharmacies are the logical choice to be the distribution system. Pharmacists are highly trained and knowledgeable of drugs and drug interactions, have access to medical records, have all the security measures in place and are accessible to the entire community,” said Greg Buekert, pharmacist Greg’s Remedy’s Rx.

City council has approved rules to prevent medical marijuana counselling businesses from clustering in communities or opening near schools, in an effort to prevent illegal dispensaries from littering neighbourhoods.

While the rules may be aggressive in a city with just two medical marijuana counselling outfits (that can’t legally dispense the drug), some councillors said it’s important to get ahead of what could be a major problem down the road.

“I’m not one to typically be supportive of overregulation but, in this particular instance, I think it’s a prudent step,” Coun. Andre Chabot said during Tuesday’s debate on the changes.

With marijuana legalization on the horizon in Canada, Edmontonians are starting explore ways they can get involved in what could be a multi-billion dollar industry.

Women Grow Edmonton is already looking at how female entrepreneurs, in particular, can get in on the green.

The group launched a month ago, with the goal of starting a conversation on the future of legal cannabis in Edmonton.

But chair Alison McMahon says it's already creating a buzz.

Marijuana delivery services used to be the type of thing you heard about through whispers on university campuses or through friends of friends — now, companies are issuing press releases about it.

Aurora Cannabis, the first company to obtain a medicinal marijuana grow licence in Alberta, has launched same-day home delivery to approved users.

The company will now bring pot directly to the homes of registered clients living in Calgary and the surrounding area within hours of it being ordered.

It plans to expand the service to the Edmonton area next month.

It’s door-to-door delivery at decidedly high speed.

Aurora Cannabis Inc., which operates Alberta’s only licensed industrial medical marijuana producer, announced Tuesday that customers in Calgary and surrounding communities will be able to get same-day delivery of the drug used to combat a variety of ailments.

Cam Battley, Aurora’s senior vice-president of communications and medical affairs, said Alberta has quickly become the second largest per capita base of medical marijuana users in Canada, with some 3,000 patients now registered with the company since its launch in January.

“It’s growing so fast it’s taking people’s breath away,” he said of the demand that’s prompted the expedited delivery model.

It's an unexpected shot in the arm for Alberta's struggling economy. And it's about as unlikely as it gets. 

Alberta's only industrial-scale grower of medical marijuana, Aurora Cannabis, just served notice that business is booming. The company now has well over 2,000 customers, beginning from a standing start in January. 

Prior to that, Aurora had to wait for the issuance of a sales licence from Health Canada. And that wasn't forthcoming until Aurora's crops had undergone extensive laboratory testing for quality control by an independent, licensed third party. 

It's an unexpected shot in the arm for Alberta's struggling economy. And it's about as unlikely as it gets.

Alberta's only industrial-scale grower of medical marijuana, Aurora Cannabis, just served notice that business is booming. The company now has well over 2,000 customers, beginning from a standing start in January.

The process of legalizing pot for recreational use isn't expected to start until next year, but medical marijuana is already a hit in Calgary.

A local clinic that works exclusively in cannabis has about 5,500 patients.

"I do this because I believe that cannabis is a safer alternative to many of the medications that I have prescribed over the course of my career," said Dr. Stephanie Mason, the medical doctor at Natural Health Services. 

Mason, a psychiatrist with 30 years of experience, made the full-time switch to the world of medical marijuana last fall. 

Who are the patients?